The Silent Destruction
by linkinparkfan9799
Summary: A month ago, something happened. Nobody knows what it was or why it happened; all they know is that it spread a plague that mutates its victims in two weeks. The survivors at Sweet Amoris now have to band together to go outside into the world of mutants and darkness to find a cure before they themselves become infected.
1. Prologue

**A story I write on MCL that I thought I'd share with the population.**

**Thanks to: DiamondCandy123 (editor/character), FantasyWarriorX, imperial14, MakeAWish, ChristineJay (character)**

**Linkinparkfan9799 Stories**

**Prologue**

_One Month Earlier_

Sweet Amoris was loud with commotion. Students were chatting, gossiping, texting, and whatever else teenagers did back then. A red-head girl was giggling with her friends. One particular mean-looking boy was lazing about his locker with a Victorian-styled male. It was all fairly normal, right then.

Classes started, and they were as boring as ever. Students slept and snored; drew pictures when they were bored…One blonde girl in particular threw a paper airplane across the room and hit her red-headed friend. There was some mime-bickering for a little while.

It all stopped at third period classes, though.

There was a spark of light in the distance. Some of the students got distracted and stared at the glow. It was approximately three to four miles away, if anything. After the teacher told said students off for day-dreaming, they went back to passing notes and gossiping in rushed whispers.

By forth period, there were reports of headaches and the slight feeling of nausea. The first few who reported such were sent to the Nurse's Office outside the main building. Some collapsed and others dragged their way to the glass doors three meters away. The more that collapsed, the more the teachers were pushing for only extreme cases to go outside.

The headaches and nausea seemed to be contagious, because more students were getting sick by the minute. Teachers panicked and forced all kids with symptoms of illness out of the school. Most collapsed on the ground, writhing while clutching their heads to cease the headache. By the end of what was supposed to be fifth period, there were only eighteen students and one teacher left.

Lysander, the Victorian-male, wrote down a list of the healthy people within the building. He passed it on to the Student Council president, Nathaniel, so it would not be lost in the course of a minute. The purpose was to keep track of those who got sick over the period of time they would have to stay in the school until the 'plague' had lifted.

None of them guessed how serious the so called plague really was.


	2. Chapter One

**Chapter One**

_Present Day: June 26, 2013_

The skies outside Sweet Amoris are dark and dreary with the nightfall. It has been one month since the suspicious flash and the outbreak of what the students call 'Head-ausea' due to the combination of headache and nausea. Of course, things are worse than a simple dehydration and stomach issue.

Miki and Fanta, two students, gawk outside the glass doors nearly cloaked in duct tape. Their boredom has been getting the best of them lately, so they tend to watch as the victims crawl on by. There is not much to do anymore after all.

And yes. The word was _crawl_.

Jay reads and re-reads the list of survivors that started a month ago. Impy and Wish sit on either side of her, frowning just as she is.

**Amber**  
~Charlotte  
**Li**  
** Iris**  
** Kim**  
~Violette  
~Chino  
~Melody  
~Castiel  
~Lysander  
~Nathaniel  
**Kentin**  
~Miki  
~Dia  
~Fanta  
~Wish  
~Jay  
~Impy  
~Mr. Faraize

"Maybe you should stop staring at that list," Nathaniel sighs, prodding the fire scrapped together with a fire from a match and desk tops. "After all, there's nothing we can do about this disease."

Dia, pacing behind him, comes to an abrupt halt. She sends him a piercing glare, hands on her hips. "We could find a cure," she snaps. "That's doing something! But no, we're sitting here like turkeys on Thanksgiving!" Violette raises a brow. "THE ONLY THING I CAN DO ANYMORE IS READ, OKAY?"

A can clatters on the ground. The group turns to Fanta, pressing a finger to her lips. "They're coming!" she hisses. Everyone knows how the two like to watch the crowd pass on by in dramatic silence, so each and every one bites their lips to hush.

Miki stares as two disease victims crawl by, seemingly gasping for air. They look like monsters out of a horror film; one of the films even parents are afraid to watch. Head-ausea not only has an effect on the physical health, but it has an effect on the physical appearance. All they know, however, is that it took two weeks for these mutants to start showing up.

"I don't see why you like watching those _things_," Jay sighs, staring into the fire. "It's just proof that this is the new plague of the century!"

Her voice comes out a bit stronger than anticipated. The mutants turn their heads to the door, spotting Miki and Fanta. They roar and rush over, crawling at an unnatural speed. "AAH!" Miki screams as one of the hands smashes through one of the gaps in the tape. Fanta grabs a detached locker door and beats the mutated appendage with it until it retreats. "Ugh…Jay! What did we say about yelling?" she whines.

"I'm sorry!" Jay huffs. "I'm just a little tired of living like I'm some captive!" She motions the school walls around her. "Think about it; we're running out of food and they are getting smarter by the day! How can we live like this?!"

Castiel frowns and kicks the fire pile, making the fire sway in the silence. Wish glances at Miki with a look of agreement, and Impy stays silent. Lysander stands, scratching the back of his neck. "Okay…I know this isn't comfortable, but it has to make due until we run out of food. At that point…"

Nathaniel gasps. "Don't tell me you're thinking of going out there?!" he yells. "You'd just catch the disease!"

"I know!" Lysander groans. "But it's the best shot we've got, right?" Silence. "…Right?" Nobody agrees.

Mr. Faraize comes down the hall with a small bag of what looks like raw meat-patties. "Dinner," he yawns, setting the bag next to the sleeping figure of Charlotte. "…Someone else convince Charlotte to eat tonight. I'm too tired to think of anything encouraging right now…" Violette and Dia move over to Charlotte, shaking her awake.

As the patties sizzle out of their ice prison, Miki moves over to Castiel and rests her head on his shoulder. He shrugs her off, but she just puts it back on again. "Hey, I need a pillow…" she swats at him. Castiel sighs and accepts his fate to be Miki's pillow for the night. "…Cas?"

"Yeah?" he mutters.

Her voice lowers to a whisper, as to not entice Jay's emotions. "Do you really think it's possible? You know, to go outside again?"

Castiel snorts and rests back against a locker, making Miki's head slip a little. "Fat chance," he declares. "The only way we're going to be able to step outside without ending up like them is to be covered head-to-toe in tin foil, and we don't have any of that, do we?" Miki does not reply, for she knows he is right.


	3. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**

_June 27, 2013_

Morning comes soon enough. Dia wakes up to being shaken by a looming figure. Upon closer inspection, she finds it to be Chino. "Oh, hey Chino," she yawns. "How'd the watch go last night?"

Chino shrugs, grinning happily. Nothing really seems to get her down, even this plague. "Smoother than I thought. I expected mutants to be breaking through the windows like they do in the horror movies." She glances around before spotting the door. "…Is it just me or is the sun focusing on one particular spot?"

Dia turns to the door. Last night's accident with the mutant breaking through the door replays in her head. "Oh, there's no glass there." Chino seems shocked. "What? A mutant broke through it last night. Almost clawed Miki's face off." She turns to the sleeping figure of the red-head. "That's what you get when you watch the Freak Show all night!" Dia declares slightly louder.

Miki opens her eyes slowly and lets her head roll so she faces Dia. "Hmm? You say something Dia?" Dia rolls her eyes and turns back to Chino. "Oh hey!" Miki perks up. "Chino, you're-" Chino starts to pace. "…Chino?"

"Guys, if the glass is broken, _it's letting air in_," Chino points out.

Dia and Miki glance at each other. "Okay," they nod. After a few seconds, their eyes widen. "Oh." More second tick by and they jump on their feet, clutching their head. "Uh-oh! GUYS!" The sleeping survivors jerk awake, startled by their yells. "WE'RE CONTAMINATED!"

"WHAT?!" the girls scream.

"What?!" Nathaniel and Lysander gasp.

Castiel glances around with wide eyes. "Am I the only one who's surprised Miki knows that word?"

"HEY!" Miki protests.

Jay huffs before crossing her arms. "Guys, this isn't the time to be all flirty!" They look at her with confusion. Despite such, she carries on. "What makes you say we're infected?"

Chino points to the door. "The glass is broken; air is flooding in as we speak."

Violette's brows furrow in confusion. "That…Doesn't make sense…" Everyone turns to her. "A month ago, everyone got sick in an hour. But…How long did we sleep?"

Nobody says a word. Charlotte glances at her watch, but remains silent. The argument from last night, in all their minds, seems silly now. The possibility of being able to go outside has now increased. "Wait," Wish blinks. "So this means…We can go out?"

"Most likely," Lysander nods. "Unless if, somehow, the symptoms have changed."

"Or people are lying," Impy suggests. Wide-eyes fall onto her next. "Yeah, I said it. We lived through it the first time, but that doesn't mean we're going to be healthy forever. I mean look at Amber and Li! Kim and Iris! KEN!"

Charlotte frowns and looks down, covering her mouth so she does not yell out in despair. The rest fall silent, remembering when their friends and classmates were cast out to the infected world now called the outside. Jay considers this option, clapping her hands together and drawing everyone out of the dark remembrance. "Okay; anyone lying?" she asks foolishly. "Think about it: if you're sick, we all get sick. The rest of us get sick and the next thing you know this town is officially Mutant-ville."

The hall falls silent. Nathaniel shakes his head and pats his stomach to show that he is fine. Miki and Fanta glance at Impy, who shrugs. Wish pats her stomach along with Lysander. Violette bites her lip and stares at the floor. Castiel shakes his head and Chino pats her stomach. Mr. Faraize…

"Wh-What happened to Mr. Faraize?!" Charlotte stutters.

Fanta and Miki rush to the door. The rest follow, only to see what they had least expected: Mr. Faraize sitting outside with tears in his eyes. He spots the students and smiles, waving. "I'm sorry," is all he says. After that, he falls back into silence, rocking back-and-forth in a ball while his arms hold his stomach; nausea.

Nathaniel takes the pen out of his pocket and scribbles 'Mr. Faraize' out. Dia sighs and gives Mr. Faraize a salute before going over to a locker. Wish watches as she tries to pry the door off. "…What are you doing?" she asks.

"We have to get out of here," she grunts. The door comes off. An odd combination of metal bending and a snap echoes in the hall. "Mutants come in two weeks, and want to know something?"

"You refuse to let Mr. Faraize turn into one?" Chino smirks.

Dia chuckles. "Right on the dot."


	4. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

_Night Time_

"Remind me again why we waited for the time when they come out to escape?" Castiel hisses as he stands next to the classroom window.

Fanta shrugs at him. "Maybe because a majority of us are crazy?" she suggests. He seems to take this into consideration, but not acceptation.

Jay and Nathaniel drag boxes of textbooks into the room, pushing them up against the wall. Lysander checks the list of survivors and decides to count the names. Dia counts along, not necessarily paying attention to the list but to Lysander himself. Impy tries to get Charlotte to come along instead of being sorrowful about Amber and Li falling to the Head-ausea. Then there's the situation Violette has to handle…

"Guys, remind me again why you're taking all the water pipes," she sighs, clutching her drawing pad.

Miki and Wish look up from their work and point to Chino. Sighing herself, Chino leans against a locker. "We can't exactly risk the mutants being like zombies and turning us with a simple bite, so we're taking precautions," she explains.

"…Isn't that what they do in movies?" Violette asks.

"They also shove people in movies," Wish huffs. "Oh look; I'm doing it now." She shoves Violette into the classroom and walks back to continue removing water pipes.

Nobody knows the exact plan of escape. After all, they all just spat out ideas and strew it up together to make one crazy idea that only psychopaths would try to pull off. All the boxes are set, and the pipe-diggers come into the class. "Seems like we're all ready…" Dia sighs.

"Ready for what?" Castiel chuckles. Wish whacks him across the head with the pipe. "OW!" Whistling, she hides the pipe behind her back, feigning innocence. Castiel decides to drop it, but still seems irritated.

Miki is the first to step on the boxes. Looking outside past the duct tape, she finds a couple of mutants crawling outside. Chino gets on top of the boxes as well, pipe clenched tightly in her hand. Lysander rips off tape from a window, and Nathaniel does the same. Soon there is enough glass for all thirteen to break through.

Jay takes a deep breath and jumps onto a box, but Fanta is the first to crash through the glass barrier. The mutants stop and whip their heads as the rest follow in suit, trying their best not to get cut by the shards. Chino and Wish clutch their pipes as the mutants rush towards them, shrieking with horse vocal chords.

"You know!" Miki pants as she runs, "when I was in Kindergarten, I always figured I'd become a chef or something! NOT MUTANT-FOOD!"

"SHUT UP AND KEEP RUNNING!" Dia shrieks.

A mutant grabs for Lysander's ankle, but he speeds up in time to evade the bony fingers. Wish whacks its partner mutant with her pipe, making it draw back for a split second. The small wall that marks the school boundaries draws close. Violette urges Charlotte forward as she starts to run out of breath. Then, just as she was the first to come out, Fanta is the first to leap over the wall, standing on top of the bricks and holding her hands out.

Jay looks back briefly to see Nathaniel lagging behind ever so slightly. A mutant stretches out for his leg, and manages to grab his pants cuff. He fails to notice and the cloth tears, making him stumble. "Nathaniel, keep pace!" Jay commands, leaping forward to take Fanta's hand. Fanta, however, drops it and lets Jay sit on her butt on the ground. "FANTA!"

"Good-people first," she smirks. Jay sends her a deathly glare, but Fanta does not change her mind in the slightest.

Miki is the first to take Fanta's hand and to be hoisted clear over the wall. Her knee-cap suffers most of the impact from falling on the ground, but that is the least of her concerns. Castiel clears the wall himself, helping Miki up and waiting for the rest. Dia is the next to be hoisted over, and Jay pushes herself onto the wall simply to push Fanta onto the other side behind Dia. This results in a collision and Dia becoming a pancake on the ground.

"This isn't really turning out as smoothly as planned, huh?" Violette sighs as she climbs over the wall with Charlotte in tow.

"Not at all," Castiel blinks, staring at Dia and Fanta as they bicker about the crash.

Lysander jumps onto the wall and motions Jay to step off. She does and Impy is hoisted over by Lysander. Melody comes up next, scraping her leg as Lysander pulls her up. Chino clears the wall herself and nearly hurls Impy up after her. Impy stumbles and trips on the other side, breaking her nose on the concrete. "Hurry up, Nathaniel!" Lysander urges.

"Uh…Guys?" Castiel gulps. Everyone past the wall turns. Lysander glances towards them for a second before swinging his head back to gawk.

More mutants are crawling towards them.

Jay mutters a quick curse under her breath and starts pushing people to the left. "Run! NOW!" Several protest, but they are shouted out by Jay. Once she is sure that they are running, she gives Lysander a glare. "Make sure you catch up, Lysander!" Lysander nods and she takes off.

Nathaniel is boosted up by Lysander and they take off. The rest of the group is not far ahead, but the mutants are quick to catch up. Both boys make sure to stomp on a limb or two to slow them down, but their breath is being reduced by the second. Everyone dashes into a building, and Wish holds the door open, beating mutants back with her pipe. Chino and Miki swat them back as well. "WE CAN'T HOLD THEM OFF FOREVER!"

With one deep breath, Lysander and Nathaniel quicken their paces and leap into the building, falling hard onto the ground. Wish slams the door and all three girls put their backs against it, panting and sweating with relief.

Castiel helps Lysander up. Melody hugs Nathaniel. The rest of the crowd is catching their breath and smiling. They have made it out of the school at last.


	5. Chapter Four

**Author's Note-Sorry it took so long! The Editing process took a bit longer than anticipated...**

**Chapter Four**

_June 28, 2013_

At noon, all is silent. The flickering flames of the fire even keep their crackling to a bare minimum. Wish sits on a window sill, drumming her fingers on her knee and humming a song (supposedly rock). Nathaniel and Jay sit together, drawing shapes and miscellaneous figures into the dusty ground. Violette, Charlotte, and Impy are playing an interminable game of rock-paper-scissors. Dia and Lysander are still asleep. As for the rest, they are upstairs exploring.

On the second floor, Fanta and Melody are turning the rooms upside down for anything of significance. The third floor has Castiel while the fourth holds Miki and Chino. Further up are the fifth and sixth floors, but the conscious and curious have decided to explore that later.

There is not a lot in the building besides furniture and dust. The furniture can be used for kindling fires, sure, but food was more of a necessity than anything. Most of them growl constantly with failure, eventually awakening the two napping students on the first floor.

"They're still at it…?" Lysander sighs, rubbing his eyes.

Impy sends him a nod while never removing her eyes from her fist as it comes up and down to go into the form of paper. Violette and Charlotte are about to put theirs down before Castiel comes rushing down with Fanta and Melody. "Guys!" he shouts. "We have to get out of here!"

Everyone's jaws drop in awe. "What-?!" Nathaniel roars. "Are you crazy?!"

"Hold up, Nat," Jay stresses, tugging on his arm. Then she turns to Castiel. "Why do we have to-"

"There's a mutant sleeping in here!" he hisses. "It's a miracle it didn't notice us last night!" After some few moments of silence, everyone laughs. "I'M SERIOUS!"

Lysander huffs, patting his stomach. "You're probably just tired, Castiel," he chuckles.

As everyone laughs, Castiel clenches his jaw in rage. Fanta scratches the back of her neck and Melody looks back to the stairs. "Well, it's one mutant, right Castiel?" Fanta whispers. "What can it-"

"**AAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"** The laughter stops immediately. **"S-STAY AWAY!"**

Jay shoots up and Wish starts running for the stairs. "That's Miki and Chino!" Impy cries. With that, the students follow Jay and Wish to the third floor.

A mutant is crawling towards Miki and Chino. They are armed with pipes, but are shaking too much in order to be any use in fighting. Unlike the rest, the mutant crawls slowly, shifting shrieks to growls in the matter of seconds. Instead of choking and gasping for breath, it seems to be trying to force out words.

"This…" Nathaniel blinks. "…This is intelligent…"

Charlotte and Violette are petrified. In so, Lysander helps them descend back down the steps as to avoid trauma. Dia squints at the mutant and whirls around to face Wish. She seizes the pipe she carries and rushes towards it in blind rage.

"Dia!" Chino gasps. She is too late though, for Dia is already whacking the mutant senseless with the pipe.

"GET AWAY FROM MY FRIENDS, YOU MONSTER!" she cries. "I already lost some friends to this plague…AND I WON'T TRY AND LOSE MORE!"

Castiel sends Nathaniel a quick glare before pushing the rest of the group downstairs. "Come on! We have to get out!"

"And go where?!" Jay snaps. She breaks out from Castiel's reach and rushes for Dia, grabbing her arms and holding them back. "Dia, STOP!"

Dia refuses to listen. In so, she wretches her arms away, resuming her exeunt of rage onto the mutant. "GO! AWAY!" The mutant lies there, blinking. It does not seem to feel any sort of pain from the pipe. Miki and Chino rush for her as well, but Dia keeps up the assault. **"GO AWAY!"**

"…**Di…a…"** The croak makes the blood freeze in every survivor. **"Di…ia…Di…Dia…"**

Impy stares at it with wide eyes, struck still with fear. "Is that thing…actually _talking_?"

"**Di…a…Dia…Dia…"** With a raspy gasp, it shrieks. **"DIA!"** Bony fingers grip Dia's ankle. **"AAAAAAAAH! OUG! **_**RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!**_**"**

Wish kicks it in the side. The mutant loses its grip on the ankle and rolls onto its back. Dry sobs echo throughout the floor as everyone stares at it in pity. Dia, however, is crying herself. Miki pats her back as Fanta mumbles the one thing everyone is thinking. "…Lafy…"


	6. Chapter Five

**Chapter Five**

Nobody dares to speak. Lafy is lying still on the ground, staring at Fanta with blood-shot eyes. **"…Fa…Fant…Fa…Fanta…"** She crawls for Fanta's feet, reaching for her ankle.** "…F…Fa…"**

Dia stares in horror, tears brimming her eyes. Everyone else just seems grim, saddened by the fact that their friend has been mutanized. Soon enough, Fanta starts crying herself, moving her ankle closer to her friend's hand so she can grab it. "Yeah…It's me Lafy…" she smiles, tears dripping down.

Wish heads for the stairs, fists clenched. Nobody knows what she's going to do, though, so they do not go after her. Castiel walks over and kneels next to Lafy, keeping his distance to be safe. "Th…This disease…It really hurts, doesn't it?" he asks.

Lafy does not give a reply. Her eyes are wide open, focused only on the tip of Fanta's shoe. Fanta notices her ankle shaking, due to vibrations raking through Lafy's body. "Apparently," she swallows, wiping tear-stains off her cheeks. "Otherwise she wouldn't be shaking this much…"

"What do you expect?" Miki sighs. "Headaches and stomach pains…Not exactly a peachy experience."

Nathaniel nods with agreement. Wish comes back with Lysander, Charlotte, and Violette. "What are you doing?" Jay asks. "They-"

"It's Lafy," Wish states. Jay falls silent with that.

Everyone decides to sit in a circle around Lafy and talk to her. They let her crawl around and recognize them one by one, stuttering out their names. Impy pats Lafy's head once it's her turn, crying. "I can't believe it…L-Lafy was sick a week or so ago…N-Not two, right? This…This…?"

Dia huffs and pats Impy's back roughly. "It's her…It's been three weeks; don't deny it." With that, Impy breaks down crying.

Lafy stalls in front of Impy, staring at her. Her bony hand pats Impy's leg and the thin line where her mouth was stretches out. **"Im…Im…no…Imp no…don…don…don cr…don cry…"**

Melody sighs and taps her knee, frowning. "…Is there really a cure for this?" she mutters.

Hearing this, everyone turns to her. Some look hopeless; some look angry. Chino is one of the angry ones. "There has to be," she snaps. "If there isn't, everyone in this town…everyone we know…They're all going to be like this. Even Mr. Faraize!" Dia grimaces at this.

Lysander nods in agreement. "We have to think first, though," he states. "What could have caused this?"

Everyone tilts their heads down in thought. Nathaniel then snaps his fingers and points to Lysander. "That glow we all saw on the day it happened!" he exclaims. "That must've been it!"

"Oh yeah…" Miki blinks. "That did happen, huh?"

"Another show of proof that your brain is tinier than a walnut," Castiel chuckles. He then starts to shield himself from the baby-punches Miki throws at him.

Jay grins and Impy laughs. The two are honestly just clowns. Yet, those clowns ease the tension in this epidemic. Violette suddenly stands, giggling all the while. Her hands are clasped in front of her stomach and her eyes brim with sadness. "So…How do we expect to get over there?" she wonders. "It looked really far away from the school…"

Now it is Fanta's turn to stand up. "Just keep walking until we see some huge exploded-thing!" she declares. Lafy seems to understand this and crawls to a corner. "…What?"

"…LAME." Jay pushes herself onto her feet, wiping her skirt for dust. "It was on the left side of the school, so we just have to go back there and run like heck for that direction."

"How can we be sure, though?" Fanta snaps. "It looked PRETTY far…I think my idea is better."

"Do you know how much damage was done when the mutants _came_?" Jay stresses. "MORE THAN WE NEEDED. Finding some 'exploded-thingy' would take days."

Wish stands up next, looking determined. "That's all the time we need. Two weeks…And Mr. Faraize is gone; got me?" After some silence, the rest stand. Miki and Dia hold out their fists, smiling. Wish smiles back and holds out hers. "Come on guys."

The boys are the first to have their fists in. Jay and Fanta shoot out theirs next, trying to beat the other in who gets their fist in first. Melody laughs and puts hers in while Chino shrugs and holds up both. Violette giggles and puts her in, glancing at hesitating Charlotte. Seconds tick by from a nearby clock, barely functioning, as she wonders whether or not to put her fist in.

Impy sighs and grabs Charlotte's hand, putting it in for her. "It's a group-fist-bump; nothing Amber would disapprove of," she says. Charlotte smiles sadly and keeps her fist in place.

"On three!" Nathaniel shouts. "One…"

"Two…" Jay continues.

"…THREE!" Dia finishes.

The fists clash together, and that's when the door to the building crashes down. Lafy starts screeching, and the groans of more mutants fill the air.

They all have been found.


	7. Chapter Six

**Chapter Six**

"Okay, this just isn't fair!" Impy groans. "Did they get time-confused or something?"

Lysander huffs and looks around. "Not the time to complain, Impy!" he scolds.

Everyone looks around, but the groans and screeches grow increasingly louder. Miki mutters a few incoherent things before standing by the stairs, gripping her pipe. "…We're just going to have to run like heck," she sighs.

"Are you crazy?!" Melody gasps. "They'll-!"

"They won't do anything!" Jay snaps. She shrinks as stares are now focused on her, but keeps her ground. "Now…J-Just grab whatever you can and let's go!"

Most hesitate, but they obey either way. Each and every one of them grabs a blunt object, having no intention of causing permanent damage to people who could be cured. "So, game plan?" Castiel pants. He is very nervous, just like most of the others.

"Hit a lot and run like heck," Wish states.

Fanta thinks for a second before nodding and preparing her toaster. "Sounds reasonable," she chuckles.

Dia gives Fanta's choice of weapon a glance before shaking her head. Who knows where she got it from? Lafy crawls for the stairs and glances down. She makes a grunting sound that makes Violette glance down with her. "Where are they?"

"I'm guessing they can't climb s-stairs…" Charlotte shakes, gripping a chair arm firmly.

"That's an advantage, at least," Chino chuckles, running down. "NOW CHARGE!"

The rest follow in suit, going down to the first level to see mutants, big and small, gathered around the stairs, clawing at the lower steps. It seems to hurt them to climb up any further than the fifth. Gripping their weapons, the survivors jump into the mass of mutants, whacking them out of the way as they head for the exit.

Mutants tear the cuffs of their pants apart and cut the ankles. Some even manage to grab the knees and squeeze bruise onto them. In Lafy's case, mutants ignore her and she is free to crawl at Mach speed for the door.

Wish is fierce, using nothing but brute strength to fend the mutants off. The boys struggle, but manage. Dia and Miki are next to each other, trying to keep the mutants off each other. Chino helps Violette and Charlotte, who are trembling too much for comfort. Impy and Melody near the door as they run and whack at the same time.

Meanwhile, Fanta and Jay are back-to-back in the dead center of the floor. Mutants are keeping their distance, but they show signs of being ready to pounce. "Bet I can take out more mutants than you," Fanta snickers.

"Bet you won't," Jay counters. With that, they lunge forward and the mutants follow in suit.

Lysander reaches the door with Castiel, Miki and Dia quickly catching up. Impy and Melody are stalled with a pack-up of mutants over at their end, so Dia runs over to assist. Chino grabs Violette and starts running on the mutants to reach the door. Violette is stumbling, but manages to follow.

Fanta and Jay are racing each other to the door, fending off mutants all the while. Nathaniel is knocked down and a mutant reaches for his face. That is when Wish clubs the mutant from the side and grabs Nathaniel. Making a mad dash, all reach the door.

All but Charlotte.

"Charlotte, come on!" Melody calls. As more mutants approach, from the outside, Melody's cries become louder.

Charlotte is shaking, gripping a lamp harshly. Looking around, she can see everyone at the door. Everyone…but her. _I…I miss Amber and Li…I don't belong with these guys…I belong with them…_ Something blue comes to her attention and she sees that one of the mutants has a blue bracelet. "…A-Amber…" Charlotte drops the lamp and hugs the mutant. "…I'm sorry…"

"**CHARLOTTE!"** Impy screams.

Jay's face twists with hurt and she turns around, running. "LEAVE HER! IT'S HER CHOICE!"

"What the heck are you-?!" Castiel starts. A shriek is heard, and he turns back around to see Charlotte gripping her head, the mutants scratching at her skin. Now making a face of his own, he grabs Wish and Miki and starts running as well. "You heard Jay! Go, go, GO!"

Everyone now has a face of regret, but they do as they are told. They run down the streets, mutants crawling at various paces all around them. All of them run, and run away…

Leaving Charlotte behind.


	8. Chapter Seven

**Chapter Seven**

_Night Time_

"I…hate…all…this…running…" Miki pants, beating a fist against her chest.

A majority of the present survivors are red-faced and sweaty. All of them are panting to some degree. This is due to the longest run any of them have probably ran; for hours on end. Castiel, Lysander, Jay, and Dia are the only ones without red-faces, so they work on helping the rest cool off. That, however, is a tricky task.

Nathaniel, even without his tie, is having troubles breathing. Two lazy potatoes such as Fanta and Miki should probably be dead at this point from over-exhaustion. Wish is too busy cursing about her sore shoulder. Impy is over-worked with helping the hyper-ventilating Violette out of the corner. Lastly, Melody is panicking.

"I…I can't believe…" she stammers. "…Why…Why did Charlotte…?"

Lysander gives her bat a hearty pat and sighs sadly. "Charlotte was bound to do it eventually…" It is obvious by his gruff tone that he is merely forcing the words out. "After all, she was barely holding on to her common sense. She…lost two very important friends to this…this _plague_…It clouded her judgment when she saw the very things her friends became…" Sadly, this is the most positive thing the Victorian-male can think of.

Violette winces at his words. Jay grits her teeth and kicks one of the walls that binds them in their shelter. "UGH!" she grunts. "Why us?! What did we do to deserve this-MMPH!"

Fanta is hugging Jay's head, much to the protest of the red-head. "Stop complaining!" she groans. "We all have to deal with it, and we all have to live it. All we can do is survive." Fanta turns to the others. "Ain't that right my peoples?"

"Not at all!" Miki cheers sarcastically, rolling a little on the ground. Wish decides to kick Miki and therefore start and argument and a rock-fight. The only one who does anything about this is Impy, but that is just grabbing a garbage can lid to cover herself from the fire.

Someone crawls close to the group, and Dia turns to see their very own mutated Lafy. Lafy just rests on the ground next to Violette, seemingly asleep. However, since her eyes are wide open, Dia marches over and forces them shut for the sake of her peace in mind. "The fact that Lafy's back must mean that the mutants stopped chasing us," she mutters (mostly to herself). "So we'll sleep here tonight and start moving towards the explosion site tomorrow. Easy, right?"

Chino lets out a snort. Castiel faces her with a look of scorn. "What's so funny?" he demands.

"Anyone care to realize _where_ the site is at this point?" she counters.

At first, everyone is confused. Slowly, Nathaniel approaches the window and scans the surrounding area that is shown. A thick gulp runs down his throat before he faces the others. "Eh…I can't see it from here…"

"Of course you can't," Melody shrugs. "It's four miles away."

Nathaniel shakes his head roughly. "No, no, no," he sighs. "I mean I can't even see anything that was around it. Even four miles away from it!"

Chino laughs and Wish drops her rocks, staring at her with wide eyes. Miki also sets down her rocks, letting Impy put down the lid. Dia and Jay also stare as Fanta tilts her head. "…Why're you laughing?" Fanta asks. "It's not-"

"She finds it funny." The soft voice of Violette is a slight shock to most of the girls. "She's excited for the challenge."

"Yes~!" Chino sings, springing up onto her feet and dancing over to Violette. "Exactly!" She then gives Violette a warm, firm hug. "And this is why you're my friend~ Anyways!" Releasing the surprised girl, Chino whirls around to face everyone. "Everyone here is just so freaking depressed! I mean come on guys! Think about it." She points to Impy. "They look mostly dehydrated. That can be reversed you know."

Miki blinks. "If that was it, why haven't they-"

Chino gives Miki a quick flick to intervene. "Now now," Chino says. "Think about it. Dehydration, inflammation…Blah, blah, blah, it can all be cured." She turns to Lysander. "Charlotte may not be dead. She may not even be infected. Mr. Faraize is not yet mutated to a severe form of disease." Whirling around to Dia, "Dia, don't you think this can be cured?" Dia nods. "Then why are you so down?"

After much thought, nobody can really say anything against it. Everything Chino said is, in fact, absolutely true. Impy stands, smiling a little. "Okay," she sighs with relief. "Let's drop the depression and just move forward."

"Yeah!" Nathaniel cheers. "We can do this, guys!"

Smiling, everyone nods and sits, going on with little things and conversations before falling fast asleep. Well, everyone but Chino. Chino stays up and watches everyone with glittering green eyes. "We can do this…" she whispers softly. "…I know we can."


End file.
